


Ignite My Veins

by Mikii



Category: Ava's Demon
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Awkward situations, Character Death, F/M, Fluff, One Shot Collection, Post-Vial Ava, Pre-Vial Ava, Time Travel, alternative universes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-22
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-01-16 13:17:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 10,870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1348825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mikii/pseuds/Mikii
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of various oneshots and drabbles pertaining to Ava and Odin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Behind You

**Author's Note:**

> edit: Please note some of these were written *ages* ago and until I have the time to sit through and revamp each one, some of the earlier chapters in particular may have weak structure or typos.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's rude to sneak up on people, Odin.

The stool wobbles on its three unbalanced legs as she stands atop of it, using the additional height to reach the kitchen counter and pour some juice into a glass. What’s even more frustrating is that even whilst standing on the piece of furniture, she has to shift onto her tip toes to reach properly.

Curse her short stature.

Ava is so concentrated on not falling off the damned thing, that she doesn’t even notice him slipping into the room at all until his arms reach out to grab her sides.

“Hm?” Flinching slightly in surprise, she tilts her head back to find herself staring into the eyes of Odin, who is annoyingly taller than her even when she’s using leverage to stand on. With her back pressed against his stomach, and his hands holding her, she soon finds herself becoming flustered.

“Hey, what are you doing!?” 

“Y-You were… going to fall off...” He responds.

She scowls at that information, dropping her head to glare ahead stubbornly. “I was not.” A pause. “And even if I was! I don’t need _your_ help, after all I’m a ‘dangerous alien’ right? A small fall wouldn’t phase me.” Lifting her chin in the air pointedly, she let out a small ‘hrrmph’ to end her speech.

Much to her chagrin, he chuckles at the comment, and the action makes his chest rumble against her back.

“I-Is that so?... A dangerous alien wh-who couldn’t even reach the… the kitchen counter top.”

Eyes snapping open, her face turns red as she grows increasingly more embarrassed by the second. Both from his mocking and at the fact he was _still_ practically hugging her!

“Aaaah, enough! Let go of me!” 

“D-Do you want me to help you down? Or can a… dangerous alien like yourself, m-make the harsh climb down?”

Skin burning – literally – and lava threatening to make its way up her throat, she let out a loud yell as she pushed her body up to crash her head against his chin. The collision made him release her at the sudden inflict of pain, which in turn had Ava falling backwards off the stool and landing on the tiled flooring.

Five seconds later, Gil walked in to find Ava laid on the floor (and was that smoke he saw flaring out of her nostrils?), Odin nursing a bruised chin and also-

“Why is the stool on fire!?”

 


	2. Smooth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [AU] Odin really needs to find better ways of picking up girls.

“Hey, that’s my drink!”

Odin glanced down at the voice, coming face to face with a rather irritated looking brunette. Placing both hands on her hips, she gave him what he assumed was supposed to be an intimidating expression. “Give it back.”

A pause. “H-How do you know its yours?”

She gaped at him, before pointing a finger at the cup in his hands. “It’s got _my_ name on it!” The nerve of this guy!

He lifted the strawberry frappucino in his hands, eyes taking in the scribbled writing on the side. Ava, huh. Well at least he now knew her name.

“Look nerd, I don’t know who you think you are but-“

“M-My name is....” He trailed off when she shot a glare in his direction, fumbling to get the words out but unable to push them past his lips.

Temper slowly rising bit by bit as he stuttered to speak, she growled. “Arrrgh, I don’t care, just give me my drink!”

“O-On one condition.”

The girls eyes widened, cheeks reddening with anger. First, he stole her drink which clearly had _her_ name on it. And now he was offering conditions? Just who the hell did he think he was!? She was becoming more and more inclined to throw the contents of the cup in his stupid face.

“Y-You give me… your number.”

As if this week wasn’t bad enough with her stressing over exams and- wait, what?

Thoughts cutting off, she blinked owlishly at him, wondering if she’d heard him right. “...Huh?”

He cleared his throat awkwardly, eyes drifting off to the side as he scratched his cheek. And wait, was he blushing? “Uh… Y-Your phone number?”

Ava pressed her lips together into a flat line, eyeing him suspiciously. “Is this a prank?” Were some teenage boys hiding elsewhere in the cafe, ready to jump out and laugh at her? It wouldn’t be the first time.

“N-No!” He insisted, giving her an earnest expression. Noting her doubtful face, he went on. “I-I just saw you… and wanted to ask you out, so…” 

“So you figured stealing my drink and aggravating me would be the best way to go about it?” She asked, giving a look that told him how stupid she thought _that_ idea was.

“W-Well, when you say it… like that…”

Studying him, Ava tilted her head slightly. He seemed so nervous and awkward, that she really had no other choice than to believe him. Even if he had come off as a bit of a jerk.

Huffing, she took a step forward, grabbing his arm and jerking it forward. Without a word, she took out a marker from her tote bag and scribbled a line of numbers on his skin. He was kinda cute after all, and when was the last time somebody had asked her out?

Pulling away, the young teen tried to appear nonchalant even though inside, she was bubbling with nerves. “There, you can call me whenever.” Chancing a glance up at his expression, she found him staring at his arm in awe which made her lips twitch into a smile.

“Since you know my name though, what’s yours?”

“O-Oh, it’s-“

**“Odin!”**

The two of them turned their heads as one of the staff members called out, placing a cup on the counter. **“Odin. Black coffee!”**

“T-That’s me.”

Before he could make to grab it however, Ava rushed forward and snatched it before him. Grinning triumphantly, she stuck her tongue out at him childishly whilst he watched after her in surprise. “Payback! See you, Odin.”

“A-Ah, see you…”

He could only stare dumbfounded as the cute girl who’d just given him her number left the shop, still unable to believe that ploy had actually worked. (Raven had given him the idea, after all, and sometimes he was suspicious that she intentionally gave him bad advice).

Meanwhile, as Ava walked outside with a skip in her step, she smiled to herself. She couldn’t wait to tell Maggie about this, when she saw her again. Giving a small hum, she raised the cup to her lips and took a sip of the drink.

She instantly regretted it.

“Ughhh, so bitter!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, officially making this a collection of oneshots instead of a stand-alone one. I get a lot of prompts from tumblr people and friends when asking for AvaOdin ideas.


	3. Misconception

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Because if anybody was liable to misconceptions from others, it was them.

Bare feet padded against the floor as Ava walked through Gil's home, dry-toweling wet hair after having just had a shower. Feet trodding into the kitchen, she came to a sudden stop upon seeing the object lying on the counter.

"Hm?"

Walking forward, Ava grasped the silver chain resting on the wooden surface and lifted it, eyes focusing on the ring dangling innocently at the end of it. If this was here, _he_ couldn’t be that far away. For some reason, Odin seemed to treasure this item, and she seldom saw him without it on his person.

Pulling the piece of jewellery closer, she turned it over in her fingers, eyes examining the arrow symbol on the outer edge. It was obviously a family heirloom of some sort, and since it didn’t fit him, maybe it belonged to a female family member. His mother? A sister? Ooh, what about a lover? A second later she snorted and dismissed the latter idea- as if.

Though, now that she thought about it, Ava realised she knew very little about Odin's background. He remained a mystery wrapped in an enigma who on occasions belittled her and smoked some questionable things.

With a pensive look on her face, she slipped the ring onto her finger, lifting her hand above into the light to see it better. It really was a beautiful ring. Drawing her hand back to eye level, she gazed into the red gem, smiling softly at her own reflection.

…and the reflection of the person standing behind her.

“!!!” Spinning around she took a step back to stare up at none other than Odin himself looming over her like the giant he was and though he said nothing, she felt the need to quickly justify herself. “I-I just saw this lying here and was admiring it is all, I didn't mean to be nosy.” Pulling the thing off her finger, she hastily tried to push it back into his own hands.

“I-It’s fine…” he replied, taking the ring. As he leaned his back against the kitchen table she stood beside him and mimicked his behaviour, staring at him from out of the corner of her eye whilst he fiddled with the chain.

Feeling the need to say something to break the silence she decided to ask a harmless question or two. “What’s the gemstone on the ring called?”

He turned his head to meet her curious look, pausing for a moment before replying. “Énkyama. I-It was a gemstone found… in a galaxy t-that’s destroyed now…”

Leaning closer with interest, she stared at the blood coloured stone. “Does that mean you can’t find them anymore?”

He jerked away at her suddenly invading his personal space. “W-Well, ah-“ Dropping the ring suddenly Odin hastily knelt down, picking the ring up once again and dusting it off with his fingers and wearing a small frown. Ava watched him, absently noticing that even positioned like this he was barely shorter than her. No fair.

Odin seemed to be opening his mouth to speak when another voice cut in.

**“What the fuck?”**

Both teens turned their heads to the doorway where Maggie stood, currently staring at them with a grimace and raised eyebrow. Green eyes flitting between the pair of them, she scoffed in disgust before turning back around to leave the room. “Whatever, if you two losers wanna get hitched, feel free. You weirdos are made for one another.” Plus it freed up Gil for her completely.

It took a moment for Ava to process her words, staring down at herself and then Odin on one knee before her with the ring held in his hands.

Their eyes met, realisation dawning as they both hastily pulled away from one another and backpedaled to put a good number of feet between them.

“It’s not like that at all!”

“A-As if that would happen…!”

The two turned to scowl at one another.

“There’s no way I’d marry an old guy like you.” Ava retorted, folding her arms.

Odin narrowed his eyes in retaliation.  “O-Oh yeah? I-It’s not like… I want to e-end up with… a twelve year old.”

“Old nerd.”

“P-Pipsqueak.”

“Kidnapper!”

“Pervert.”

“Will you two get a room or quit flirting, you’re making me nauseous!” Maggie yelled.

**_“We’re not flirting!”_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I originally chose the name 'Énkyama' for the stone because of some vital word in another language with a few extra letters added or rearranged. But... I've since forgot what the original word was or how I even transformed it into this term so the meaning is well and truly lost, haha.


	4. Frustrating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When you're travelling with with a small group in a spaceship, you have to make the best of what entertainment you can find.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've no idea what you call the technological piece Odin had with him, so I shall refer to it as a camera even though that is completely wrong.

“What the hell is _that_ supposed to be!?”

“I-It’s a drawing of you.”

“That looks nothing like me, though!”

“Heh, I disagree.” A pause. “A-And if you hadn’t broken my camera… I w-wouldn’t have to draw you.”

Ava scowled, trying to grab the book from Odin’s grasp. She wasn’t very successful when he lifted it high above her, leading her to jump for it in an embarrassing fashion. Stomping her foot in aggravation, she glared up at him whilst he placed a condescending hand on her head.

Pulling away, she huffed, folding her arms. “You’re a jerk.”

From across the room, Maggie watched the entire spectacle with a disgusted expression on her face.

Yep, both total losers.

.

.

“A-Are you nuts?”

“I said I was sorry!”

“You… You b-burnt my face!”

Ava gave a sheepish smile in return. “Well, look at it this way. Now you don’t have to bother with shaving, I took care of it for you!”

When Odin turned away from the mirror on the wall to glare at her, Ava gave an awkward laugh, taking a small step backwards.

“Well, um, I think I heard Maggie calling for me.”

“Nope.” Maggie cut in, laid on the floor listening to the radio. No way was she getting pulled into this.

“I-I meant Gil!” Ava stammered, nearly stumbling over her feet in her haste to get away.

Rolling her eyes, Maggie sighed. They were both dorks, hell they’d be a match in heaven if they ended up hooking up together. Though the idea of _that_ happening was doubtful.

Not like she cared anyway.

.

.

Okay, she cared a lot.

Maybe not so much in the beginning, but after spending months watching from the side-lines as those two tip-toed around one another was frustrating and damaging for her health if she was getting this stressed about it.

The two obviously had the hots for one another, so why they couldn’t just grow up and make a move was beyond her. Infact, she was pretty sure they’d been on the verge of kissing one another when she walked in on them one day.

Like right now, Ava had her head leant up against his shoulder as she dozed off, the pair sat together against a tree with Odin’s jacket thrown over the both of them. If that didn’t scream “couple”, then what did? All they were missing were the matching sweaters.

She glowered when Odin gazed at Ava’s sleeping face softly, her hands clenching into fists. And, when he raised a hand to push a stray lock of hair out of the way, she swore colourfully.

“W-What?” Odin snapped his face to look at her, surprised when he saw just how angry she appeared.

“Will you grow a back bone already and just ask her out? Or kiss her? Or something! You two are frustrating to watch, and it’s getting on my last nerve.”

His eyes widened in alarm at her words, and he pulled away, causing Ava to fall against the ground and wake up, eyes opening blearily. “Huh?”

As Odin made an excuse and ran off, Maggie slapped a hand to her forehead. “Idiots, I’m surrounded by complete idiots.”

“What happened?… Maggie? Are you alright?”

“Shut up, Ava.”

.

.

“Maybe I could get them both drunk, and lock them in a closet.”

“I don’t think that’s very moral, Maggie.” Gil replied, placing a mug of tea down before her as he sat opposite. “And Ava could simply burn the door down, she’s quite an escape artist.”

“Oh. Yeah.” Maggie frowned at that nugget of information, propping both elbows on the table and cupping her chin in hands.

“Does it really matter if they take a while to act on their feelings?” Gil asked, clasping his drink between both hands. “Let them go at a pace they like. They’ll figure things out in the end, I’m sure.” Nevy had agreed with him, as well.

The younger woman groaned at this. “But it’s been months, Gil. _Months!_ I can’t take it anymore. Between all this fighting Titan stuff, and trying to be nicer…” Something she’d been slowly working on, in hopes of reforming her friendship with Ava. It was a slow work in progress. “I can’t handle being in a room where the sexual tension is bordering on pornographic!”

Gil’s cheeks coloured at her words. “Ava’s only fifteen, Maggie.”

“She’s not as innocent as she looks.” Maggie muttered, words trailing off as she lifted the mug to her lips. Gil raised an eyebrow at her response, clearly doubtful, but said nothing in return.

When Maggie had complained to Tuls about her thoughts, and asked if there was any way to use his powers on them, he’d disagreed unfortunately. When he then asked why she was so enthralled in their love life, she’d glared and said nothing. In all honesty, she wasn’t sure why she was so interested either. Part of it may have been because she was only just now rekindling her friendship with Ava, and friends helped friends get boyfriends, right? Or at least, she assumed as such. She’d been asking Ava enough questions on how the smaller girl figured she could win Gil over.

“Argh, I need a drink.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea, Maggie.”

“Doing it anyway!”

.

.

Maggie listened intently, ear pressed against the door as the voices spoke on the other side. She wouldn’t call it eavesdropping, she was simply… listening in concern for her friends.

Yeah, that.

The four of them had just escaped from a mildly dangerous situation on a planet. Nothing life-threatening (since she and Ava couldn't technically die what with being pacted), but Odin had recieved a burn curtsy of Ava to his arm when rescuing her from the planet’s inhabitants. As such, Ava had guided Odin to the bathroom to treat his injury, the sound of running water reaching Maggie’s ear from inside.

"Okay, this might hurt a bit but just-"

“Oww!”

“Stay still-“

"G-Get that stuff away from me."

"I have to clean it, though!"

“Y-You’re the one who burnt me… in the first place!”

“I said sorry, didn’t I?”

“Y-You should come… w-with a fire hazard painted on you.”

“Hey!”

Odin chuckled in response, though it turned into a hiss of pain when Ava pressed the wet cloth against his arm again. A moment of silence passed between them.

“Hey…” Ava began, hesitantly.

“What?”

Another pause, longer. “Um. Thank you for what you did, you kinda saved my butt back there. I owe you.” Biting her lower lip anxiously, she risked glancing up at him to see his reaction.

He blinked at her as if surprised by her words, before an amused grin worked its way onto his face. “O-oh really?” Her owing him should come in handy in the future.

“Wha- I’m trying to be sincere here, don’t laugh at me!”

“I’m not laughing.”

“Liar! Oooh, you’re so annoying sometimes, do you know that?” She asked, pouting at him.

“I-If I’m so annoying… Then w-why do you keep t-talking to me?”

“Shut up.”

Maggie cursed the door for blocking her vision as the two inside went quiet, dammit what was happening in there? She scowled, wishing her pact had involved the power to see through things, _that_ would have been helpful.

“I-Is this okay?”

“Uh huh…”

Her eyes widened, trying to press herself flat against the door. No further sounds were coming from inside after those suddenly quiet words. What were they doing in there? Were the kissing? Please tell her they were kissing.

Her patience lasted a full five seconds longer before she threw the door open, wide eyes taking in the sight of a blushing Ava sat atop the sink with Odin holding her against him, his lips pressed against her own.

“I knew it!”

The two ripped away from another, looks of horror crossing their faces.

**_“Maggie!”_ **

“I knew it, I knew it!” She cried triumphantly, turning to run away into another room. “Gil, you owe me five starbucks!”

“What, you mean they finally kissed one another?”

“Caught them smooching in the bathroom just now.”

Ava wailed, hiding her face in her hands whilst Odin awkwardly pulled away and rubbed the back of his neck. Yeah, it was going to be difficult trying to have a relationship with Maggie in close proximity.

“Just kill me.” Ava mumbled.


	5. Accidentally

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [AU] Really now, it's like you can't set a person on fire (again) without everyone accusing you of doing it on purpose.

“S-So, I heard you set a student on f-fire.”

Ava lifted her head, knees hugged to her chest as she sat on the floor at the back of an empty classroom. Eyes falling on Odin stood in the doorway, she frowned, glancing back at the floor in front of her. “How’d you find me?”

Walking into the room, he took a seat beside her whilst offering a smile. “I-It was either here… or the library. Y-You’re not as much of an escape artist, a-as you like to think you are.”

She made a ‘hrrmph’ noise at his response, frown deepening and eyebrows knitting together. “It wasn’t like I did it on purpose.” Stretching her legs out in front of her, she turned to meet his gaze. “He was teasing me, so I just gave him a little push. How was _I_ supposed to know there was a Bunsen burner directly behind him!?”

He snorted.

“Don’t laugh, it’s not funny!” She protested, elbowing him in the ribs. “Miss. Bellarmina gave me a full week detention because of it.”

"W-Well... it's not like it's the f-first time you've set somebody... on fire." He pointed out, raising an eyebrow.

"That was an accident too!" She insisted, earning an amused grin from him.

As she sulked over her latest ‘accident’, Odin placed a hand on her head, ruffling her hair in an affectionate fashion.

When he’d first transferred to this school at the beginning of the year, he’d heard multiple things about the girl who was renowned for having a bit of a temper. Most of which involved students telling him to “stay the heck away from that freak, she’s crazy”.

He hadn’t taken much attention to such rumours, and upon coming across a girl sulking on a staircase one day, he’d come to befriend her rather quickly.

Truth be told, he found it funny how she let her anger get the better of her sometimes, leading to hilarious situations. Or, hilarious in his opinion. The idea of most students in the school being afraid of a fifteen year old who looked twelve and was barely five foot amused him to no end.

Then again, she had caused injury to eight students.

Noting that she was still upset, he gave a comforting smile, nudging her shoulder with his own. “W-Well, at least he won’t tease you again, h-huh?”

Try as she might, Ava couldn’t resist the small smile that appeared on her lips upon seeing his expression. Whenever she was down lately, it seemed it was always Odin who came to cheer her up. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a friend.

“Thanks.” She mumbled, giving him a tentative grin whilst pushing a piece of hair behind her ear.

He blinked at her for a moment, before turning his head to look in the opposite direction. “I-It’s fine…” Giving an awkward cough, he hoped to God she didn’t notice the hint of red on his cheeks. Really now, it should be punishable to look that adorable and innocent.

“You know, if you were really my friend.” Ava went on in a nonchalant tone that had him narrowing his eyes suspiciously. “You could always share your lunch with me… Since I’ve been hiding in here all period.” Her stomach was starting to growl from not having eaten anything since breakfast.

He stared at her blankly for a moment, taking in the sight of her sheepish look before giving a roll of his eyes and chuckling.

“W-Well… I wouldn’t want to risk angering the shorty… with a temper, would I?” He teased, pulling out a lunch box from his bag whilst she stuck out her tongue in retaliation.

“Exactly, hand over your lunch before I set you on fire too. You wouldn’t want to get on the bad side of this girl.” She warned, giving him her meanest look which wasn’t that mean at all really. Infact, it was rather cute.

Dammit.

"J-Just eat your ham sandwich"


	6. Pact

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She wouldn't let anybody get in her way, not even Odin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a small drabble.

“S-So, what’s her part of the pact?”

Currently sat on the floor, Ava glanced back over her shoulder towards Odin who was sat in a chair reading that book of his at the table. At his question however, he turned his attention towards her leading the red-head to give him a suspicious frown.

It hadn’t been that long since Odin had become aware of Wrathia, and Ava’s pact with her. To be perfectly honest, she wasn’t entirely comfortable with him knowing since she hadn’t intended on letting him know in the first place.

The less people who knew, the better.

“Her?” Ava repeated in an attempt to stall, acting as if she had no idea what he was on about.

“W-Wrathia.”

Fiddling with her necklace anxiously, Ava’s lips tugged down as she let her eyes stray off in the opposite direction of him. “Um, well…”

How exactly did she word the fact that Wrathia planned to track down the Titan and violently kill him in return for invading her galaxies over a decade ago? And that it was herself who had to do the killing with her own hands?

Aware of Odin’s eyes burning holes into the back of her head, she gave an awkward laugh before turning her head back towards him, a sheepish smile in place. “Well basically, I have to help her get revenge.”

He raised an eyebrow. “R-Revenge?” By now he’d turned his body in the chair to face her completely.

“Yeah…” Another laugh bubbled up in her throat – or wait, was that lava? She really could do without puking up again.

“W-What sort of revenge?”

Ava didn’t even need to answer aloud at his question, the way she chewed her lower lip and her eyes shifted aside spoke volumes.

He gave her an incredulous look. “Y-You’re going to kill someone? A-Are you insane!?”

Snapping her head up to meet his gaze, she glowered at him, feeling the need to justify herself. “It’s not like I’m killing somebody innocent. He’s practically a tyrant anyway, so in a sense I’m doing all of space a good thing!”

At least, that’s what she told herself, because it was the only way she’d be able to stomach killing somebody.

“Y-You…” His eyebrows knitted together as he stared at her, taking in her words for a moment. The mental cogs turned and a second later, his eyes widened. “T-Titan!”

“Shuuush!” She whispered, suddenly aware of nearby footsteps. If Gil overheard them talking about her quest to murder Titan, well… somehow, she didn’t think he’d be so welcoming to her anymore.

“Y-You can’t do that! D-Do you have… a death wish?”

“I can take care of myself.” She muttered stubbornly, folding her arms over her chest.

Odin continued to stare at her in disbelief, and Ava had to give it to him, if she was somebody else listening to this conversation, she’d think herself crazy and suicidal too.

But she had to do this. If it meant having a new life and a second chance, Ava would stop at nothing to claim that. Even siding with a wrathful demon and plotting to kill a creature more powerful than anything she could ever imagine.

And nothing Odin could say would make her change her mind.

“If we’re done here, I’m leaving.” She stated haughtily, standing up and heading towards the door.

Odin opened his mouth as if to say something, however a second later he closed it again, opting to glare at the floor in brooding silence instead.

Both of them were left feeling disgruntled, and with words unsaid.


	7. Water

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Ava tries to help odin get over his fear of water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written a fair while back, another of those 'the four travelling together planet to planet AU' kinda things. I just want the four of them to travel together happily *sobs*.

“I don’t get why you’re so terrified, it’s not like anything bad’s going to happen from standing in the water.”

Stood knee-deep in the ocean, Ava stared with exasperation at the young man stood stubbornly on the beach and adamant on not moving from there. If he had it his way, he'd spend their entire beach trip remaining well in the shade of a dark umbrella on the sand and not once moving from there. Rolling her eyes, Ava placed both hands upon her hips, currently dressed in a one-piece striped swimsuit with her hair pulled back and tied up.

It had been a rather spontaneous decision to come to the beach, with the four making a pit stop at a small planet. And, since it was 90% ocean, it just seemed to make sense to visit the sea for a day of fun and relaxation.

Or, at least it was _meant_ to be.

Ava would never have guessed Odin had a fear of water, but apparently he did and as such, she had spent the better half of the day trying to gently prod him into getting over his irrational thoughts.

Further down the beach were Maggie and Gil, they’d also offered some help earlier on as well, but Maggie being Maggie had become too irritated to deal with Odin and had stormed off not too long after.

And since Odin still acted less than friendly to Gil on occasions, he had refused any help the older man had to offer, leading Ava to suggest he go keep Maggie company whilst she helped Odin instead. Last Ava had seen the other pair, Maggie had been trying to persuade a slightly hesitant Gil into rubbing sun tan lotion over her back.

Though, she had to be making more progress in her endeavours than Ava was. They’d been at the beech for nearly an hour now, and so far Odin had only stepped in up to his ankles before making a quick retreat, his tirade of excuses ranging from fear of drowning to seaweed that looked like an eel.

“Get in already, I’ll be old with grey hairs at this rate before you make any progress.”

He scowled at her. “W-Why do I have… to do this, anyway?”

“Because you can’t spend your entire life hiding away from something.” She retorted, narrowing her eyes. “I spew lava for a living, and you don’t see me running away from a bit of water.”

“It’s not j-just a bit, though.”

“Oh come on! _Pleeeeease?_ ” Clasping her hands together, she gave him a pleading look.

Unfortunately for Odin, Ava’s pleading expressions were very hard to deny. Though he refused to let her ever know that, since he could only imagine the numerous way she’d take advantage of him with that knowledge.

“F-Fine.” He replied, giving in with a slump of the shoulders as he conceded defeat. Anxiously taking a few steps along the wet sand, his lips twisted at the sensation of salt water lapping against his bare skin. “J-Just a few steps.”

Her face lit up at his compliance, giving him a toothy grin as he stepped into the water and he hated how cute she looked doing that because it made it even harder to refuse her in this torture. But by now Ava was cheering him on excitedly, and so it was with great displeasure and difficulty that he kept moving forward.

Eyes focused on her face alone, as soon as he came into close proximity, he made a grab for her forearms to anchor himself in place lest he be swept away by a rogue wave or something dangerous like that. She chuckled at his actions, and leaned back to see him properly whilst raising an eyebrow. “There, this isn’t so bad is it? I told you so.”

He gave a non-committal grunt, glancing aside. “C-Can I go back now?”

“Noooo, come on. Just follow me.”

Grimacing, he none the less allowed her to pull him further out, legs wading through the chilly waters. He really needed to stop letting her co-erce him into things. Teaming up to defeat the dangerous Titan in a life threatening mission was one thing, but going waist-deep into water was on another scale entirely and-

Wait, waist-deep?

Breaking out of his thoughts, he froze, hands clasping onto hers for dear life as he came to realise just how deep the level of the water was. Oh God, he couldn’t die yet. He had so much to live for.

“See? It isn’t so bad, once you get used to it.” Ava told him, as she released his hands.

She released his hands.

She **_released_** his hands!

“W-W-Wait! W-What are you doing!” He yelled, panic settling in.

“Relax, I’m right here you nerd-“

He glanced down into the waters below him, body frozen. “I-I don’t like this, come back.”

“Will you calm down-“

“Ava!”

“Oh _fiiine_ , we’ll do it your way and go back.”

No sooner had Ava said those words and moved closer, did Odin feel something slither past his leg, proceeding to freak out and move about in a frenzy.

.

.

“What’s going on with those two?”

“Hm?” Turning her head as Gil spoke, Maggie propped herself up onto her elbows to follow his gaze. When her eyes fell upon the pair in the ocean, she sighed, watching them in bemusement. “What are those idiots doing now?”

Water splashed violently as Odin appeared to be freaking out, despite Ava’s yells and protests – who was taking the brunt of the splashing and covering her face with her arms. Maggie wasn’t entirely sure what was happening, but two minutes later, Ava came out of the ocean red and flustered, the water on her skin evaporating into steam.

“N-No, come back Ava! D-Don’t leave me!”

“That’s the last time I try to help somebody.” Ava growled, stomping past Gil and Maggie with hunched shoulders and a scowl etched onto her face.

Gil gave a small and awkward smile. “I suppose I should go rescue him then.” As he stood up and walked over to the sea, Maggie let herself lay down once again onto her back to enjoy the sun.

“I hope he drowns.”


	8. Bangs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That’s just the way it was…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was just a nonsensical little drabble I wrote, but for some reason it got quite a few fair notes on tumblr so I thought I'd publish it up here too.

Dark eyes watched from beneath unruly bangs of hair as Odin stared inconspicuously at a certain red haired shortie in his field of vision. Such subtle glances had been happening more and more often as of late as the older boy found himself harbouring a crush for the girl.

A good few months had passed since they first found themselves in one another’s company, and when he had slowly come to the realisation that his feelings regarding Ava were more than platonic… Well, he’d proceeded to squash them down out of sight as best he could and ignore them – much like he did with the demon constantly overlooking his shoulder.

“You’re doing it again.”

He flinched, for a moment horrified at the idea he’d been caught staring by her. “D-Doing what?”

However, as Ava lifted her head up from the book in her hands, she only stared at him flatly. The two of them were currently sat at the root of some trees nearby the town they were staying at. “Blowing your hair out of your eyes. Why don’t you just cut it already, if it’s bothering you?”

He blinked at her response before glancing aside with a slight frown. “It’s fine.” It wasn’t like the tidiness of his hair was at the top of his priorities right now. So what if it’d grown a bit too long over the past few months?

“…You should listen to the girl.”

His eyes narrowed, the only outward reaction to the deep voice that floated toward him from behind.

“How do you expect to be taken seriously by others, when you appear unruly in appearance?”

Scowling, he began searching his pockets for his pipe, irritation growing when he couldn’t find it and dimly realised he’d left it back at the place they were staying in at the moment. Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair as he straightened up, aware of Ava’s eyes watching him and no doubt wondering why he was acting so odd.

“Why not ask the firefly to cut it?” Pedri added, his words surprising Odin for a moment before he recovered. For some reason Ava was one of the few people the alien seemed to like, what with him holding some weird fantastical belief that she had something to do with his former wife – Odin tried his best to block out any words the demon had to say, but he’d learnt that much at least.

Ava sighed, grasping the attention of both men as she abruptly stood up with the large book held to her chest.

“W-Wait! Where… where are you going?” Odin asked.

Glancing over her shoulder, Ava graced him with a less than pleased expression. “There’s no way I’m going to be able to read in peace with you sighing to yourself every five seconds and acting all weird.”

As she made to move and walk away again, he stood up, quickly reaching out to grasp her arm. As soon as his fingers brushed against the skin of her elbow, she span around, gaze flashing – he quickly retracted his hands before he got burnt (it wouldn’t be the first time).

“What?” She asked, voice blunt.

Rubbing the back of his neck, he forced a grimace of a smile onto his face as he tried to think on something to say since he’d stopped her without even thinking. “You…”

She raised an eyebrow and he could feel himself beginning to turn red as he scrambled for something to say. “Y-You could… cut it?”

Wait, what?

She blinked at him in surprise. “Huh?”

He’d actually gone and blurted out Pedri’s ridiculous suggestion.

As he stood trying to silently recover, Ava frowned. “Why me? I’ve never cut anybody’s hair before in my life.” She rolled her eyes. “I’d probably just end up singing all the ends off.”

“R-Right…”

As he mentally cursed himself, her scarlet gaze returned to him and wandered over his face and she frowned. “You’ve been acting really weird lately, what’s going on? I followed you all the way to this planet of yours but nothing’s happened since then. All we seem to be doing is sitting around wasting time!” By the end of her tirade, her skin has taken on an amber glow in her frustration, and he could feel himself glaring at her slightly. Even now all flustered, he could only find himself thinking of her as adorable, and it seemed liking her was doing nothing but causing problems for him.

“What’s _that_ look for?” She demanded, scowling at him as he all but glowered down on her.  

.

.

.

Pedri watched the pairs exchange silently from the side, eyes fixated on Ava and the glow her skin had taken on. Yes, he was positive that she hosted his former love Wrathia – there was no doubt about it in his mind.

His gaze then drifted toward Odin, annoyance flowing through him at the thought of the human he’d been attached with. It was quite clear he harboured some semblance of feelings for the girl, and he was more than content to watch the progression of their relationship. Considering Wrathia and he were partners in a former life, it would be all too coincidental for the two humans to also fall for another and for it to be anything but fate.

As Odin averted his gaze however, Pedri noted that any progression on their part wouldn’t be happening anytime soon. He would have possessed the boy and had him forcefully confess his feelings if he were one for that sort of mischief – as it was however, he was well above such shenanigans.

“A true warrior is honest of his feelings.” Was all he remarked, watching as Odin’s shoulders tensed at his words.

Ava huffed when Odin refused to reply to her further prodding, his eyes fixated off to the side somewhere as he stood in his own thoughts. Turning around, she walked off, this time without him chasing after her.

“Stupid jerk…” She muttered beneath her breath.

Odin’s eyebrows drew together, frown deepening. Without a word, he turned and walked off, intent on returning to his room and taking a **_long_** smoke from his pipe.

Him confess? Yeah right. Guys like him didn’t get girls like her.

That’s just the way it was…


	9. Déjà Vu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [AU] And he would turn back time forever for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Imagine Person A trapped in a time loop, forced to relive days over and over every time Person B dies. And B dies a lot. A has to keep saving them and at first tries to explain the loops to B, but after each rehearsed explanation, each drawn out conversation is erased by B’s many deaths, A eventually gives up and just works endlessly to continue each day a little longer until it might eventually stop.
> 
> Now imagine this from B’s perspective. B doesn’t know anything about the loops, doesn’t remember any of their deaths, only knows that A has become strangely overprotective lately—and that A looks so terribly weary.

That morning as Ava Ire leaves the house, it’s to the sight of none other than Odin Arrow of all people stood at the end of her garden path waiting for her. How had he even figured out where she lived? Was he some sort of stalker? She wouldn't put it past the guy, she didn't trust him or that scruffy beard of his.

Giving him a cautious look, she hitched her backpack over her shoulder and walked over to meet him, one eyebrow raising as she spoke. “Why are you-“

“I-I thought we could walk to school…. together.”

She stops at that, blinking up at him in surprise because since when was _he_ interested in hanging out with _her_? They’d only recently started talking to one another, and that was only because they’d both been placed together on an assignment for History class in the past week. Even then, the only conversations that had transpired between them since had been filled with insults and snippy comments.

So it was completely understandable that Ava frowned at him suspiciously. “How do you even know-“

“I’ve passed by this st-street before and seen you w-walking into this house. S-So that's how I know where you live.”

She glowered at him as he interrupted her once again, feeling the urging rise to stomp her foot on the ground even if it was childish. How did he keep knowing what she was going to ask?

“How are you doing-“

“T-That?” He finished for her, lips quirking slightly in amusement as he looked down at her and noticed her frustrated expression. “I have g-good intuition.”

“Argh, whatever! I’m going to be-“

“L-Late?”

A pause before she looked aside and muttered beneath her breath. “Well that one was obvious.” Ignoring the amused look he sent her way, she brushed past him, striding down the path with the intention of getting to school on time. She didn’t once look back and see the pained look that passed over his face.

.

.

“Why do you keep following me?” Scowling at him over her shoulder as he stood behind her in the lunch line, she was extremely wary of why he somehow seemed to be sticking to her like glue all of a sudden. Even in class she’d felt him looking her way – she hadn’t managed to catch him in the act there, but she was absolutely _positive_ it had been him making the hairs on the back of her neck rise.

“W-Who says I’m following you?” He replied nonchalantly, stepping forward along with her as the line moved up and they were asked what they wanted.

Quietly simmering with frustration, she grabbed her lunch and left the diner - and him -behind. She always got nervous sitting by herself in large crowds, so she often took her food and went to an empty classroom. Miss. Nervine even left it purposefully open for her and didn’t seem to mind.

….But when she got there, someone was already in waiting for her.

“H-Hey.”

Mouth dropping open, the redhead stared in surprise at the young man seated on one of the desks inside, a lit pipe perched between his lips. How had he?....

“How the hell did you know I’d come here?” She cried, walking in and glaring at him. Placing her tray on a nearby table, she pointedly placed both hands against her hips, trying to appear intimidating despite the major height difference.

“Y-You told me about this place before.”

“What? No I didn’t! As if I’d tell _you!_ ”

Grimacing slightly at her high-pitched voice, he then settled for staring at her, expression blank. After a moment he eventually glanced aside, pulling the pipe from his lips and blowing out tendrils of lavander smoke. “M-My mistake then…”

Ava sighed in exasperation at that, folding her arms. “Well whatever, I have to go-“

“T-To the library?”

“…”

Turning her head, she pinned him with a fierce glare whilst he stared back at her indifferently. Pressing her lips together into a flat line and counting silently to ten to prevent herself from lashing out, she eventually broke the silence in a more quiet manner.

“…Yes.” She wasn’t even going to try asking how he knew that, Ava was positive by now he was some kind of freakish stalker. He’d always come off as a little weird to her anyway.

At her response, he frowned, looking off aside. “I-Isn’t it a bit dangerous… to be going out in the dark b-by yourself? It’s winter s-so it gets really dark early on.”

“What are you? My dad?” She retorted. “I suppose that now you’re going to suggest that you come with me, right?”

His eyebrows drew together at that comment, though his expression remained otherwise uninterested. “Even if I did, i-it wouldn’t change the eventual outcome.”

“Huh?”

He glanced towards her, their eyes meeting. Ava blinked in surprise at the grief she was greeted to that lay in his gaze, taken aback by the intensity. However, just as soon as it came it was gone with a blink of the eye, and standing up he placed his pipe away.

“B-Bye Ava.”

“Wait, you’re going?” As soon as she said the words, she immediately regretted it. Like what, was she trying to actually make him stay? Hell no, she should be glad he was leaving! But… even telling herself that, Ava couldn’t deny she felt the strangest sense of déjà vu being with him. Which was stupid of course, because they’d hardly hung out together enough to warrant something as absurd at that. And especially not in her 'secret hideout'.

Odin meanwhile had paused at her words as well, looking over toward her with a frown. “...Wh-Why? Do you want me to stay?”

“I…” Cheeks darkening in embarrassment, she settled for narrowing her eyes at him. “Of course not! Go away you nerd, you're tainting the air around me.” Sticking her tongue out in his direction, she folded her arms and turned her head pointedly away from him.

She thought she heard a soft chuckle from him, but she didn’t sneak a glance to check. Only when she was certain he was no longer in the room did she turn her head, smug façade dropping and frowning uneasily after him.

“Odin Arrow, huh?...”

.

.

“You’re just gonna let her go the rest of the day alone like that? I bet she doesn’t even make it to the library before she gets offed.”

“Ooh, I bet it’s a hit and run this time!”

“No, that happened only a few time loops ago. I’ll guess a mugging gone wrong.”

Attempting to block out the morbid chattering of the two girls behind him, Odin stood upon the school roof, eyes following the redhead currently leaving the school grounds as classes were let out.

How many times had it been now? He’d long since lost count but surely it was nearing to a hundred any day now. A hundred times repeating the same day, trapped in a never-ending loop, attempting to save the life of one girl whose fate seemed destined for death on this particular day despite his best efforts to stop it.

He prevented one method of her dying, and another method simply popped up later that day to take her life away. He was so tired. Tired of repeating the same day and going through the same conversations, of pleading with her to believe him in the times he did tell her what was going on, of begging her not to forget everything – to forget him – and her promising she wouldn’t…

...except she did. Every time.

“Oh look.”

At the sound of Crow's voice, three pairs of eyes watched as screams sounded out from the busy street, people jumping out of their cars to go check to the petite figure knocked down by one of the cars.

“See, I was right!”

“Pipe down, you said a hit and run, Raven. The guy who hit her this time is still there and checking she’s alive.” A snort. "Of course, even if she is, she won't be for long."

“Eeeh? That still counts though! Right?” Turning toward her elder brother, the dark haired girl tugged at his wrist. “Hey Odin, tell Crow it counts!”

“You’re wasting your time with him, he’s sulking over his girlfriend dying.” A pause. “Again.”

“S-She’s not my girlfriend.”

“Oh wow, he spoke!” Raven cried in mock surprise.

“Whatever, let’s go. He won’t reset the timeline until he finds out for certain that she's dead, so we have time to grab some food. Let’s go, Odin can pay for us.”

The girl held up a hand brandishing their elder brothers wallet, sneakily taken from his jacket. At this, her twin grinned mischievously. Score.

Odin sighed, letting them do what they wished. He was exhausted with all of this. It was technically against the rules to reset timelines for personal gain, but so far nobody in his family had tried to stop him. Raven and Crow seemed amused by the whole thing, and so far Olai seemed unaware of what Odin was doing.

Even if his family did intervene to put an end to his tampering, he was insistent on still finding a way to continue.

He refused to stop until Ava Ire was allowed to live.

Even if it meant replaying this day for years to come.

> ** So yeah, reliving the same day countless times trying to rescue a person, only for them to die before your eyes again and again is bound to tire you out.  
>  On some occasions he treated her out, other times the two of them sat in Ava's 'secret hideout' just chatting and bonding together until she eventually met her end some way or other. If Ava was aware of how much he knew about her (from what she herself had told him), she'd certainly feel a little freaked out and be calling him a stalker!  
>  But anyway, short one-shot. Hope you like~ **


	10. Ouchie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eavesdropping is a bad hobby, Maggie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally a Secret Santa present for hikaru-kitten on tumblr.

Maggie was walking down one of the ships hallways, yawning and stretching her arms above her as she awoke from a small nap and brief catch up with Tuls. It was as she was passing by the bathroom that she first heard Ava’s voice.  


“Ouch!”

Raising one eyebrow at the odd exclamation, she spared the door only a brief glance before rolling her eyes and moving on. The idiot probably fell in the shower like the clutz she was.

“If you’d j-just stay still and stop moving around s-so much.... that wouldn’t happen.”

She stopped walking.

As the two unmistakable voices exchanged between one another from within the small room, the young woman turned slowly back around to fix her green eyes on the door. Was she hearing right? Were Ava and Odin both in the bathroom... _together?_

...

Why the hell would they be in there?

“Will you just hurry up so we can get this over with?” Ava asked impatiently.

“H-Hey, you’re the one who asked _me_ for this s-so stop moving away. It won’t work if y-you don’t trust me.”

Ava released an exasperated sigh and Maggie could just imagine the shortie averting her gaze in stubborn embarrassment with her next muttered words. “…I do trust you.”

“Heh.” A pause. “J-Just stay still and it’ll be over in a... m-minute.”

“Fine.”

Holding no interest in whatever boring banter they were exchanging in there, Maggie began to turn back around and leave.

“N-Now… open your mouth as wide as you can.”

"Nngh!…"

**_Wait, what?_**

The girl snapped her head around so fast she almost got whiplash, lips twisting slightly into a grimace as she rubbed the back of her neck tenderly.

“Gyyh!…”

“R-Relax.”

Maggie stared at the door in horror, mouth wide open. Just what the hell were those two doing in there?

“Nn…”

“Sh-Shit!" Odin swore. "Your teeth scraped me, h-how sharp are those things?”

_Oh. My. God._

Having no wish to listen in on _that_ , Maggie almost tripped over herself in her haste to run away, spinning around-

-to find Gil stood directly in front of her.

“Oh Maggie, have you seen Ava and Odin?” He asked, smiling softly and completely unaware to the underage sexual scandal taking place on his spaceship!

“Nngh! Haah!...”

Gil’s smile dropped, gaze moving past her towards the bathroom door as he frowned in confusion and made to walk past her. “Is that Ava?”

Oh fuck. Quickly turning around, she grabbed him by the arm and twisted him so he was looking down at her. Raising a finger towards her lips in a gesture to be quiet, Gil seemed confused but nodded none the less. Now she just needed to get him out of this hallway so they could-

“Ahh!-“

“O-Okay, almost….”

“Mmph!”

Gil’s eyes suddenly widened in horror at the additional sounds, realisation dawning upon him just what they were doing in there. Maggie wanted to slap a hand over her face. Or Ava and Odin’s. Odin’s twice actually. Just because.

"A-Almost there…"

"Gyah…"

"H-Here we go…"

Gil raised a hand over his mouth, face turning a dark shade and looking unsure as to whether to feel angry or mortified. Both?

_"NGHHHH!"_

" **SHIT! G-Goddamit!... Y-You bit me!”**

Why did this have to happen to her? She was a good person! Well... okay, maybe not good but she didn't deserve this, god dammit!

"I'm sorry, Odin.”

“I… I’m bleeding!”

"I didn't mean to! I really am sorry, I’ll go get some bandages-"

With that the door flew open, almost crashing into the pair stood outside as a flushed Ava appeared in the doorway, droplets of blood staining her lips as she rushed out. She quickly stopped short before she could collide into the two, glancing up at them in surprise and confusion.

"W-Who is it?” Odin asked as he appeared behind her, frowning when he saw the two teenagers stood there speechless. Not caring why they were there, he cast Ava one more look before moving to brush past her. “Th-That’s the last time I help you... remove a loose tooth.”

Ava snapped her gaze back towards him as he walked away, appearing ashamed once more as she hurried to catch up with him.

“I really am sorry!”

“You almost b-bit my finger off.”

Maggie and Gil exchanged wide-eyed looks. So they weren't... oh. Well that was... that was... good? 

Both of them looked away from one another, unable to meet each others gaze. Both of them remained oblivious to Ava taking Odin's injured hand in her own and raising it to her lips in a soft kiss as they vanished around the corner, Odin's lip quirking upwards at the action.

The next time Maggie overheard them, she simply walked on, knowing better this time.

...Which was probably for the best since there was no tooth problem to account for those noises _that_ time.


	11. Advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pedri tries to give Odin dating advice. It doesn't go well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A tumblr prompt from ages back: "Pedri walking Odin through how to ask out someone and trying to coach Odin through a date based on how it worked with him and Wrathia. Or just Pedri spending the whole time telling Odin he is doing it wrong."

Eyes moving over the variety of soft animal toys up for grab, Odin’s gaze settled upon a maroon coloured fox, beaded lilac eyes staring back at him. With a mental nod to himself, he raised the rifle in his hands and fired.

“You hit it!”

Ava stared in surprise from beside him as the rubber bullet collided with the bulls-eye, sending the wooden block flying backwards. It was with much inward smugness that he pointed toward the fox for the stall vendor to retrieve and hand over.

“H-Here…” Dropping it in her arms as she blinked in surprise, he glanced aside as he attempted to act nonchalantly, even though inwardly he was sweating buckets. His nerves proved needless however, since a moment later Ava grinned up at him, hugging the fox to her chest.

“Um, wow. Thank you…”

Lips twitching upward, he watched as Ava turned around, bright eyes wandering across the fair they were currently attending. Or, perhaps ‘fair’ wasn’t the best word. It was more an annual festival for this small planet, designated to celebrating TITAN’s arrival all those years ago in which he had supposedly ‘rescued’ them from starvation and desolation.

Odin called bullshit.

“An animal gift… I see you are taking my words to heart.”

Face dropping at the familiar voice, Odin glanced over his shoulder at the looming figure hovering over him. Gaze focused on the girl now examining trinkets from another nearby stall, Pedri watched her intently, arms folded over his chest.

“Although in my case, I diligently hunted and slaughtered a wild hellbeast which was roasted for our wedding. But I suppose… _this_ will suffice, in your case at least.” Lips curling up slightly, clearly holding some disapproval of what he considered lack of effort on Odin’s part, Pedri glanced down at him.

Eyes narrowing in response, Odin glowered up at him. Ever since Pedri had been made aware of Odin’s more than platonic emotions regarding the petite girl, he seemed to have made it his personal mission to offer unwanted advice on ‘courting the timorous firefly.’

Odin hated every second of it. Most of the 'romantic tips' Pedri offered him involved violence or criminal activity, or just about anything that would earn him a punch in the face.

“Maggie! Gil!”

“Ah Ava, there you two are. We got separated in the crowds, but thank goodness we found you again.”

Glancing over, dark eyes took in the  reappearance of the rest of their group as they approached Ava. Quite earlier on, they'd been pulled apart in the bustling crowds when entering the festival. The petite redhead smiled shyly up at Gil, whilst Maggie gave a less than pleased look at the fact her ‘date’ with Gil had been interrupted by finding Ava once again. God damn it.

“Regarding the doctor… If you wish to assert your strength and emotions for the firefly, you should challenge him.” Pedri went on much to Odin’s annoyance. “I defeated my love’s former husband in physical combat, then adorning his skull as a mask to display my triumph and glory to all others. She was rather fond of it.” As he spoke, the memory of the skull itself manifested gradually upon his face.

“I-I’m not going to… to wear his skull as a hat!” Odin snapped, eyes wide in disbelief as in a rare instance, he actually responded.

Pedri narrowed his gaze at that, the skull evaporating in an instant as his thoughts were disrupted.“It was a mask.”

“S-Same thing!”

“Not so.”

“Argghh!” Raising his hands to his head, the young man felt like tearing his hair out in that moment. Liking a girl who was out of your league was exhausting enough without the added ‘help’ from a demon haunting you and soliciting murder.

“Odin? Are you alright?” Gil’s voice floated toward him.

Raising his head, Odin suddenly found three pairs of eyes focused on him, a mix of worry and confusion marring their faces (or in Maggie’s cast, disgust).

“A-ah, yeah…”

“Well then, I think further on ahead there’s some food, so let’s all head there. Then I believe there’s an hour long public speech on TITAN’s history!” Gil grinned happily at that, glancing toward both girls who plastered on fake, uneasy smiles in response.

Rolling his eyes at the guys antics, Odin fell into step behind them as they began walking, gaze trained on the back of Ava’s head before him.

“…You should offer to tie back her hair, it would show trust on her part and have you show a gentle nature exists within you also.”

Odin frowned. That… was actually kinda okay advice.

“Then, instigate combat between the two of you and fight until the blood of you both mixes together at your feet and the adrenaline pushes your bodies to join as one.”

Okay, scratch that last part.

“I… I need a smoke.”


	12. Who Are You, Really?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Wh-Who are you really.... Ava Ire?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Ava finds out Odin is the host for Wrathia's husband.
> 
> This will be the final chapter for this series. I want to post any future Ava/Odin stuff separate from this as I continue to improve my writing and it also leaves me with the option to add to any one-shots with additional chapters.
> 
> EDIT: I've since learned the Limbo Lenses are Ava-exclusive and only work for her. This was written before I found this out so take it with some suspension of disbelief.

He was seated on the couch half-dozing as they waited for the ship to reach its destination. Gil had vacated to the other side of the vehicle in a not-so-subtle attempt to get as far away from himself and Ava as possible. Maggie had attempted to follow after the boy but considering the argument he’d heard taking place soon afterward, he was under the impression the younger teen had been rebuffed and sent away. Heh, serves her right for lying so much. Karma always came back to bite you in the ass for things like that.

“Nn….”

Odin’s gaze moved towards the fourth and final occupant of the ship, currently laid asleep on the sofa beside him as if she had no care in the world whatsoever. You would have never thought the girl capable of decimating an entire TITAN headquarters if you looked at her now.

Her eyes moved beneath her eyelids as she shifted, and Odin jerked when Ava rested her head against him, the abnormal heat from her skin seeping through his clothing. It was like having a human hot water-bottle pressed against him. Just as he was questioning what to do with her, he felt it.

A wetness on his shoulder.

“Urgh-!” Shoving her off the sofa he recoiled away, the “dangerous alien” landing with a thud and yelp.

“W-Wha….” There was a pause as she quickly took note of her surroundings at the abrupt awaking. Then, another when the relalisation of what had just happened sunk in. “Hey-! What the hell!?” Pushing herself up, Ava pinned him with a sharp glare which he easily returned.

“Y-You drooled on me!”

Her eyes widened at that, anger giving way to embarrassment and cheeks flushing golden. “I- I did?”  Her voice was a squeak.

He pointed to the wet patch upon his sleeve. Her eyes took it in, face burning brighter and seriously- was this really the same girl who had annihilated an entire haven of TITAN followers?

“W-Well…. I can’t help it, I was asleep!” she protested, looking anywhere but at him. He scoffed in response though he had to admit it was a little amusing watching how flustered she suddenly was and- yup there came the infamous “pervert glasses” as she tried to hide behind them in humiliation.

“…a-anyway! You still shouldn’t have shoved me off the sofa for that!” she snapped, regaining some of her ire as she glared at him from behind the lenses.

“Right…” he drawled, “so n-next time.... I sh-should just let you cuddle up t-to me all you want?”

Her face shone like a beacon, nostrils flaring and wisps of smoke escaping them.  ** _“I-I didn’t-!”_**

She stopped.

He raised an eyebrow.

“….Uh…. A-Ava?”

The girl said nothing. The glow in her face instantly extinguished as she continued to stare up at him.

She was beginning to creep him out.

He stood and took a hesitant step forward because this was getting way too weird for him. “H-Hey…” It was then he noted her gaze still fixated in the same position. She hadn’t been looking at him.

She’d been looking at something behind.

When Odin turned his head, his eyes fell upon Pedri seated on a counter behind the couch. The demon was staring intensely at Ava.

And Ava…

Ava was staring **_back._**

His heart leapt into his throat.

“Y-You… You can s-see him?” His voice felt odd to his own ears, a bit too high pitched to be normal but it successfully broke Ava out of whatever shock she’d been caught in. The girl visibly flinched, head snapping to him and then back to Pedri before she quickly jolted to her feet only to stumble slightly.

“Hey…” He reached out towards her but she backed away, head dipped down to stare at the floor and avoid looking at either of them.

“No no no… nononononono… this can’t be happening!” She muttered, hands tugging at red locks of hair.

“You _can_ see him, c-can’t you?”

She raised her head up to meet his gaze, expression torn and confused and looking as if she wanted to be anywhere but here right now. Odin wished he could read her thoughts right then because in this moment he had no idea what she was thinking.

**“Little firefly.”**

Both of the teens jumped at the deep voice, looking toward Pedri who was gazing at Ava in… fondness?

Ava peered at the large and intimidating demon for a few moments before she let out a strangled sound and ripped the glasses of her face with a pinched expression. The glasses were thrown across the room and Odin watched this happen with little fanfare however he noted when Ava looked back in Pedri’s direction, her gaze now seemed to look _through_ him more than anything.

Breathing heavily, Ava wiped her hands down the length of her face with a groan. “Why you? Why him? Wrathia’s going to have a field day with this!”

“Wrathia?”

 _“Argh!”_ She let out a yell that made him jump, stomping her foot as she paced the length of the room in agitation and muttered more. Odin watched her do this for a few moments before going to pick up the glasses she’d discarded.

Were these what allowed her to see Pedri?

Ava noticed him just as he placed them over his own eyes and she made a beeline for him.

“Hey-!”

-and suddenly there was a terrifying demoness heading towards him, like an older Ava with sharper teeth and larger horns and an anger more aged and murderous.

She ripped the glasses off his face and the vision vanished, the demonic entity replaced with Ava once more who glowered up at him. But unlike the other being he’d seen, he had no fear of this girl killing him. Not right now anyway. Ava took a step back away from him, her anger dimming as she turned her head to avoid his gaze. Silence stretched between them as she carefully toyed with the glasses in her hands.

“….Wh-Who are you really… Ava Ire?”

Her lips pressed tightly together at the question, closing her eyes and releasing a soft sigh. When she looked at him once again she appeared tired - tired and resigned.

He’d asked who she was.

So she told him.


End file.
